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Doctor Who To Be Axed, Again

Posted by kdawson on from the who-gets-the-scarf? dept.

twofish writes "According to UK tabloid The Sun, hit BBC sci-fi program Doctor Who will reportedly end next year after its fourth season. Producer Russell T. Davies has decided to bring the hit sci-fi show to a close — to 'go out at the top' — so he can concentrate on other projects, according to the article. Davies and other senior staff are feeling the strain of the heavy workload imposed by the show, nine months a year of 16-hour days, and plan to resign en-masse in 2008. Davies, a long-time fan of Doctor Who, relaunched the series in 2005, 16 years after the original series was axed." Update: 05/31 16:36 GMT by KD : Reader palewook points out that the UK Guardian sets this story straight: "But there isn't any way it would be axed even if [Davies] left. He loves the show and he does feel that maybe it would benefit from some new blood."

4 of 304 comments (clear)

  1. bummer. by apodyopsis · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Nah, don't worry it'll be back. I've lost count of how many times that shows been pulled, revived and then cancelled again.

    Mind you, there must be a limit that even a time lord can regenerate.

    The monsters were scarier in the 1980s though - or was that because I was much younger?

  2. Hope I'm the first to call by cordsie · · Score: 3, Interesting

    ... bullshit on this. A popular show, in it's prime, that's currently raking in cash hands over fist for the BBC from various products and merchandising efforts, is going to be axed right in the middle of a massive wave of popularity? Yes, you might kill a popular show just as its popularity or quality is fading, give it a dignified death, whatever. But this makes no sense. Producers and writers can be replaced, refreshed, whatever. Combined with the fact this is the Sun reporting this, and ... well ... as I said, bullshit.

  3. Sun journalism 101 by 91degrees · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I wouldn't believe a word that rag says. It's the worst of the Murdoch rags. Even the people who work for it consider it pretty disreputable.

    Here's an example... Tango produces a commercial where old lady puts pin into balloon and old lady pops. The Sun called up the "help the aged" charity and said "They're blowing up old people. do you think this is right?". Woman who hadn't seen it agreed that on the face of it it sounded bad. The Sun then ran a story about how Help the Aged wanted the ad banned.

    They do not fact check unless not doing so will get them sued. Their source could be a teaboy for all we know.

  4. Degrees of seperation by ItsIllak · · Score: 4, Interesting

                    Rupert Murdoch
                      /       \
                     /         \
    News International      Sky One-----COMPETITOR--------BBC
         /                     |                            |
        /                      |                            |
    The Sun                 Various----LOWER RATINGS----Doctor Who

    Do you see what's happening here?